Links With The Past: She-Wolf Model & Roma Shirt
It is a model of a she-wolf, known as the Capitoline wolf, suckling two infants. This has been the symbol of Rome since the third century BC. This symbol reflects the well-known myth relating to the founding of Rome nearly 3,000 years ago.
In the myth, twin baby brothers, Romulus and Remus, were thrown into the River Tiber by their uncle. They were saved by a she-wolf, who nurtured and looked after them. When they were adults, the two brothers killed their uncle but, following a quarrel, Romulus killed Remus.
He then founded the city of Rome, which was named after him. The gift from AS Roma of the she-wolf came in a dark red presentation box with a golden yellow lining. These are the colours of Roma which were chosen because they relate back to traditional colours of the Roman Empire.
Roma has adopted these colours for both its shirts and its shirt crests. The shirt illustrated here was worn by Roma’s captain, Lorenzo Pellegrini, in the match against Leicester City at Stadio Olimpico. The Foxes were beaten 1-0 (2-1 on aggregate) in the Club's first-ever European last-four tie.
The crest, which is one of the most famous in football, features the she-wolf superimposed over the imperial colours, the word ROMA and the date 1927, the date of the club’s foundation.
The font used on the crest replicates the letter-forms found at the base of Trajan’s Column. This column, which is nearly 2,000 years old, is still standing in Rome. It is located near the Forum and depicts Roman victories under the Emperor Trajan in modern day Romania.